A Masterpiece Of Our Love (The Masterpiece Trilogy Book 1) (20 page)

He raised a brow. "Snap? Oh come on. That's a word an innocent woman would use," he taunted, knowing he'd rile her a bit.

"Back to that again? Really? I thought we'd put that to rest the other day!" Becca shook her head. If she weren't driving right now, he'd lean over and tangle his fingers through those beautiful locks of hers. Want shot through him, straight to his groin.

"Oh no, you only passed one test. I just have to come up with some others." He grinned, loving the idea. Oh the things he could do.

"You're determined to make me crazy," Becca pulled into a parking spot. He never even noticed they had arrived because he'd been too busy teasing her and having fun. "We're here," she announced, turning off the engine and pulling the keys from the ignition.

"I'm anxious to see what your home looks like." Hunter held her hand while they made their way to her apartment. The complex wasn't large, but the buildings were nice. They were white brick and well kept. The patios were large and spacious.

A door flew open from an apartment nearby and a short, young woman came barreling out, straight for Becca. "I thought I saw your car pull up! You're back already?" The woman's voice was high pitched and excited as she wrapped Becca in a bear hug. When she let her go, the woman's curious gaze wandered to Hunter.

"Hello," he said, waving at her.

"Ooooh, I recognize you. You're Hunter. I've seen your pictures in Becca's apartment. You're so much cuter in person. Becca, I had no idea you were bringing him!"

"Rissi, this is Hunter, of course. Hunter, meet my neighbor and friend Rissi." She made the introductions.

So, Becca had pictures of him up in her apartment? It made him even more curious about what else she had in there. He held out a hand to the bubbly woman in an effort not to be rude. "Great to meet you. I'm glad to be meeting some of Becca's friends."

"Rissi, I'm actually going to Virginia with Hunter for the rest of the summer. Would you be okay to keep an eye out on everything while I'm gone?"

Rissi's eyes went round as saucers. She shot Becca a knowing grin as if to say 'You go girl'. Her ponytail swayed as she nodded eagerly. "Of course. Ugh, you know that I found Vince going into your apartment?"

Becca sighed. "I know all about it. He showed up on the island because I didn't answer his calls for a whole night."

"Seriously? Hunter, please tell me you kicked that guy in the nuts!" Rissi turned to him.

Hunter let out a laugh. "I like you already. Blunt and telling it like it is. How come neither of us have had that big of an effect on Becca yet? To answer your question, no. I didn't give him a swift kick." He did not particularly want to stand around talking about Vince.

Rissi leaned close and elbowed him. "Tell you what. Work on her this summer, and I'll take over when she comes back." The three shared a laugh after Becca folded her arms and stared at the two of them.

Hunter wrapped his arm around Becca, kissing her cheek. "Hear that, angel? I have a lot of work to do."

"Rissi, don't encourage him! He's already trying to get me to prove that I'm not as innocent as he makes me out to be. Don't add to the list or I'm going to be in for a long, interesting summer!" Her beautiful eyes lit up as she focused them on his face.

"I think you know me well enough to know I don't need encouragement." He shot her a saucy grin.

"My number is in her phone. Call me anytime and I'll give you stories that will prove she's not innocent." Rissi winked.

"I think I'll have to do that. I'm curious."

Becca squirmed. "Just for that, I'll change all my contact names to something only I'll understand and you'll have no way of finding out. Now stop it, Rissi!" She tried to act stern and serious, but the big smile on her face proved otherwise.

Rissi laughed. "Ahh, you have a good summer. You better call me as often as possible. Hunter, you take care of my friend. It's good to meet the man this girl never stops raving about. I gotta run. It's almost time to pick Jade up from school." The perky woman hugged Becca again and surprised Hunter by hugging him next. "See ya!" she said with a wave before running back to her apartment.

"She seems nice," Hunter mused as they continued their path to Becca's place.

"Mmmhmm. She's a real good friend. She's been living here almost as long as I have, so we've known each other almost ten years." They stopped at a door with the number 1934 on it. Becca pulled a set of keys out and unlocked the door, pushing it open. "Come on in."

Hunter followed Becca inside, taking in the sights of her living space. The walls were a plain dull white, but Becca had filled them up with painting after painting, many of which he'd never seen before. Right by the patio door sat a large easel. A beige sectional took up a good amount of space in the living room. "It's so homey. Very you." he said, continuing to look around. Why had he never come to see her home before? "All these paintings... You know I'm going to have to ask again. Why are you not selling these in a gallery somewhere?"

Becca's cheeks reddened again. She faced him, taking his hands in hers. "You really think I should, don't you?"

"Well of course." He pulled her closer, sliding his arms around her waist. "You just wait. You'll meet people that are going to bow down to your talent. Don't be surprised if you have a few offers. Then when you're world famous, I can say with pride that I knew you back when. That I love the most amazing, talented artist on this planet."

Her eyelashes fluttered and she looked down for a second, then flashed her gaze back to him. "Say that again," she whispered.

"What? That I knew you back when?" His lips curved up in a grin. He knew exactly what she meant, but had to mess with her anyway.

She moved from his hold and put a hand on her hip. "That's not what I meant." A smile played at her lips.

"Hmm. You'll have to remind me," he teased.

"Oooh! You're incorrigible!" When she stomped her foot, he burst into laughter.

Hunter enjoyed the way she acted frustrated when he knew she loved it. "I love you," he finally whispered, drawing her near to him again. "I love you so much."

"I love you too. Come here. Let me show you something." Taking his hand, Becca led him down a short hallway to a closed door. She opened it. This was her bedroom. A big pegboard on the far wall caught his attention immediately. His heart warmed at the display. She'd made a board for all the keychains and keepsakes he'd picked up for her throughout the years.

"I knew you loved these souvenirs, but I had no idea you made such a beautiful display." He moved closer to it, touching the pieces and remembering how he had carefully searched for the best thing to send to her every time. He never visited a new place without taking a piece back for Becca to treasure.

"Putting them out always helped me. I looked at them and thought of you. I figured one day, I'd be able to get over my fear and go pick out keepsakes of my own."

"Our thoughts seem to always revolve around each other." Hunter fingered one of the first keychains he'd brought her. It was from Niagra Falls. He sucked in a breath at the way she'd given everything it's own special place. Becca had put a lot of thought into this. He tore his gaze away from the board and noticed on her nightstand three frames. One was of her eight year old self with her family. It must have been not too long before the crash. Her parents were in the back, with big, happy smiles on their faces as the two girls were seated in front of them. Sweet, innocent kids that had their whole lives ahead of them until everything changed.

The second picture caught him off-guard. She had a picture of him on that nightstand. He stood by the water as the sun was setting and he'd smiled for the camera. He hated photos and rarely smiled for them, but Becca always had a way of getting him to smile for a picture. That one was from the last year they'd been together.

The thing was, he knew only very special things went on that nightstand. She'd always had a thing about keeping the things she held dear close to her where she rested her head at night. He had no idea he was on that list. The third picture was of her graduation, where she stood proudly with an excited smile on her face. Her aunt stood beside her with a wide, proud smile of her own. He'd been the one to take that picture.

Touched, Hunter sat at the edge of the bed, staring at the photos.

"That's one of my favorite pictures of you. I remember that day well. We were laughing and playing some silly alphabet game. You were trying to keep my mind off of waiting for a phone call about the job I have now. We laughed so hard our stomaches hurt. I had a different picture of you up before, but I had to put this one close by," Becca said softly, sitting on the bed beside him. It was the day they almost kissed. Yeah, he remembered that day well, too.

He held her, staring at her sweet face in awe. "I'm honored that you've made such a display and that I'm on your keepsake stand beside your bed. I had no idea I was there."

"You're one of my favorite people in the world. You always have been, Hunter. You took the time to fight for me. You could have walked away after we were found and never looked back. Instead, you always made time to bond with a girl that had it all stacked against her."

"Angel, you might have had things stacked against you, but look how strong you are." Hunter kissed her lips. "There's no way I could have walked away from you."

"I really think you standing up for me helped. In a world full of people that were supposed to have my best interests at heart, you were the one that always did. From so far away, you were my advocate. Don't think I don't know how many times you called around, looking for ways to help me shine and succeed. There was a doctor that took all your words to heart and ended up telling me about it. Not only was I shocked that a doctor listened with true interest to a young man's thoughts, but the fact that you took the time to make sure someone helped me and pushed me to keep going when you couldn't be there physically to do it, that's something I'll never forget. You say you owe me, but I think I owe you."

"I think they listened because you reacted so strongly to me being there. I don't know why or how, but you did. I think maybe we need to call it even and just love each other." Hunter kissed her again. "I'm sure one way or another, without even realizing it, we'll continue to save each other."

Because that's what they'd always done. They saved one another.

Something smelled wonderful! Becca cracked open an eyelid, studying her surroundings. She didn't remember anything from Hunter's room last night. After they left her apartment, they had lunch, hit the road and made a few stops. They didn't arrive at his place until very late. She'd been so out of it. Now that it was daylight, she took in the view of the room. Simple, but warm. The large bed she was in sat in the middle. Long drapes hung over what was must have been a window or even a patio door. He had a dresser on the opposite wall of the bed and a computer desk.

"Good morning!" Hunter sailed into the room carrying a tray. That explained the good smell that she woke up to. He'd brought her breakfast in bed. He'd already dressed and looked like he started his day a long time ago.

"Hunter!" she gasped, smiling. He set the tray in her lap, then leaned in for a sweet, satisfying kiss.

"Yes?" he grinned.

"You're spoiling me!"

"Nah, I'm not spoiling you. Just a lot of love." He cupped her face. "Yup, you feel real. I can't believe you're really here with me."

Becca took her first bite of the breakfast. It was pancakes, which he knew she loved. He even had blueberry syrup and a fresh cup of coffee. She'd never had breakfast in bed before. After a few bites, she glanced up at him. "Not eating?"

"I already had my morning fuel. I've been up for a few hours, dealing with some stuff." His grin was sexy and mysterious. What had he been up to?

"What time is it?"

"Almost ten."

She gasped. She rarely ever slept this late. "Goodness. I can't believe I slept so long."

"My internal alarm clock doesn't let me sleep like that. I did stay in bed longer than I normally do, only to hold you and look at you."

"You and your fascination with watching me sleep," she laughed, taking a sip of the coffee. Whoa!

"Whoops. Too strong?" Hunter laughed at her reaction. "I don't just watch you sleep. My mind was full of thoughts this morning."

"A little bit, but it's fine. Thank you so much. What a surprise to wake up to."

She finished up the last of it and Hunter promptly took the tray from her, jumping to his feet. "I brought your bags in. They're all there by the closet door. Whenever you're ready, I'll show you the house. Shara will by by later, I'm sure."

"I can't wait to get the tour. I promise I'll be quick." She pushed the blankets off and set her feet on the hardwood floor.

"Take your time, angel. There's no rush." Hunter blew a kiss at her before leaving the room.

She padded across the floor to her bags. She pulled out a pair of black shorts and a teal top. She found her sandals by the bags. Hunter must have slipped them off her feet last night. Becca pulled out her toiletry bag and walked into the adjoining bathroom.

Wow. What a huge shower stall. She took in her surroundings. Hunter had always been fairly organized. His bedroom and bathroom reflected that. Everything had a place.

She ran a brush through her thick tangles and pulled her hair back. She touched up her face with a light amount of makeup, and glanced at her reflection before being satisfied.

Just as she put her little bag back in the suitcase, someone knocked on the door. Becca laughed at the thought of Hunter knocking on his own bedroom door, but she loved his consideration. Not that he hadn't seen her naked before, but things were still new and unusual for them. He seemed unsure when it was okay to invade her privacy.

She pulled the door open. "You don't need to knock on your own door, you know," she informed him.

"It's yours too, for the summer. That is, if you want to share a room and a bed with me. You're welcome to your own room if you want it."